I just added a new book to my knitting library: French Girl Knits by Kristeen Griffin-Grimes. This book is not just a pattern book; it’s full of interesting ideas and techniques for creating garments that require very little seaming.
The book into chapters by the style of the patterns: Romantic and Vintage Inspired, Rustic with a Gypsy Edge, Innovative and Unconventional, and Streetwear with Style. Although I didn’t like every single pattern in this book (when do I ever?), there were at least a couple of patterns in each section that I would consider making for myself or someone else. My favorites in this book are probably ‘Sophia’–the cable-edged cardigan shown on the cover, and ‘Wrenna’, a short-sleeved, leather-laced cardigan knit from the top down.
But the patterns are not my favorite part of this book. What makes it stand out, in my opinion, is the techniques described in each chapter. For example, in the Romantic and Vintage Inspired chapter, the side-to-side seamless construction method is covered in fairly good detail, including a basic overview of how the technique works, and tips for constructing a garment with this technique. I particularly liked the discussion of top-down seamless raglan construction in the Rustic with a Gypsy Edge chapter, because the author gives some great tips on how to avoid the baggy, ill-fitting look that some top down raglan sweaters seem to have.
All-in-all, I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone that is interested in seamless construction techniques or is just looking for some beautiful, interesting and feminine sweaters to knit.
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